… its a fact, bags have their own museums! The ultimate female accessory, an integral part of women, has its own history not just in fashion, but also in woman’s & men’s everyday life since the 16th century.The first bags appeared at the times that in clothes there were no pockets, but there was a need to transfer keys, coins and sewing materials. They were more like wallets mostly made of leather and people used to hang them under their clothes. For men, the idea of the bag didn’t last long, but on the contrary women, especially after the fashion change in clothing, started to need bags even more. With the pass of time they were having designs, decorations, even larger size, covering the needs not only of every day life, but also in a matters of fashion.
It is certain that the three biggest museums of women’s bag, with exhibits that travel us through the centuries, have to tell us so much more…
First Stop Amsterdam: Hendrikje Museum of Bags and Purses
Hendrikje Museum of Bags and Purses is one of the biggest fashion museums of the world and definitely the biggest bag, purse and suitcase museum.
The idea began from Hendrikje Ivo, about 30 years ago, after buying a small antique bag of celluloid and attached ivory dated about 1820’s. That’s when he started getting interested about history of bag and his first possession was his first exhibit.
Some years later, Hendrikje Ivo and his wife, managed to collect over than 3000 bags and they created their first exhibition that first where two rooms in a villa of Amstelven, in order to be introduced to the public. The purse and bag collection was growing and the need of a bigger space raised. Since 2007 the museum is housed in a 17th century building in Herengracht, Amsterdams’ most famous channel. The purpose of the collection was not just the history behind every bag but also the quality, special materials used and the construction of the bag. You can find in the museum anything, from leather cases made of goat in 16th centure, to collectible bags like Chanel, Gianni Versace, Hermės and more.
Second Stop Seoul: Simone Handbag Museum
Simone Handbag Museum is another proposal, where you can find over 300 handbag-exhibits from 1550 until nowadays. The impressive construction of the five-storey building made by brick and glass, which has the shape of a bag, opened its doors to the public on July 19th, 2012 in the Gangnam of Seoul, South Korea.
The inventor of the collection is Kenny Park, managing director of the Simone Handbags handbag company, and the collection was edited by London College of Fashion professor and museologist Judith Clark. The bags, with a total cost that surpasses one and a half million dollars, are mostly collected from Europe, and dated back to 1550, with exception of some modern bags from USA.
Also, one can also see manufacturing laboratories of the bag, as well as find supply materials for their manufacture.
Third stop Tokyo: World Bags and Luggage Museum
Ryusaku Shinkawa, owner of ACE Bag Co. , was inspired to create the museum, on the occasion of a trip to Germany in 1958, in a museum with leather products. He was triggered to begin a different kind of collection with handbags, as from the leather products of the exhibition, the bags exhibited were just 10. They became the first items of his collection, returning to Japan. That is how he started searching for bags from all over the world. His purpose was to learn even more about the culture and the customs of handbags in different countries.
The World Bags and Baggage Museum, until our days, is counting about 550 historic bags, collecting them over 50 years. Bags made from rare materials such as frog, elephant, shark, eel, but even the bag used in Apollo 11 to collect the stones from the moon.
Photos Source : acejpn.com
Bags, either looking back over the centuries, or the modern ones that are now part of fashion, continue to serve the everyday needs of women and definitely each one has its own story to tell on the matter of transferring women’s personal belongings!
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